An Act (of True Love)
by Angel Poses and Runny Noses
Summary: AU. When Anna froze, it seemed everything that could have gone wrong did. A heartbroken Queen Elsa is left with a frozen kingdom, absolutely no control over her powers, and a seemingly dead little sister. No matter how hard she tries, everything is falling apart. Until a message from the trolls reveals that perhaps there's still a chance for Anna to be saved, after all. Elsanna.
1. Whiteout

_**Disclaimer:** This fic is actually a joint effort between Tsubasamilkybunny and I. She is credited with the plot, storyline, character developments, and all related elements of this work. I have only written out what her thoughts were. Neither of us own Frozen, nor are we affiliated with Disney in any way, shape, or form. No copyright infringement is intended. Credit for the Frozen franchise goes to Disney._

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 **Chapter One: Whiteout**

"Anna!" Elsa roared, collapsing into her now frozen sister's arms. She draped her head atop Anna's shoulder and howled, squeezing back the sea of tears that had forced their way behind her eyes. Elsa's bellowing reverberated across the frigid landscape, and the anguished tones blended together in a deafening cacophony of suffering and woe, exploding across the fjord in much the same way the ring of a solemn church bell denoting the passing of a poor soul would expand across a village.

Kristoff stood, frozen in much the same way as the blizzard around him was. His arm remained halfway outstretched towards Anna, his lips were rounded as if to call her out. Sven had extricated himself from the glacial depths of the waters he was trapped in, and had returned to his master's side... Only to lay his eyes upon the ice cube once called Anna.

Elsa's hands were shaking as they scrabbled across Anna's figure, desperately seeking out any sign of life or warmth. Finding no purchase, Elsa fell to her knees, and then to the ground, wrapping herself around Anna's feet as she wailed into the ice around her.

"Oh, A-anna!" She whispered shakily, looking up once more at the sickeningly _human_ chunk of ice. She looked away, curling tighter around Anna's legs as hiccups and sobs mixed sporadically.

Kristoff shook his head, finally snapping out of the stupor that had claimed his mind and body, and finally took note of the crying woman, _Elsa_ , who was curled around Anna's legs.

"Sven, go find Olaf," he ordered quietly, shoving the reindeer away. He looked back at Elsa, and pondered on his next move for a moment.

"Hey," he began gently, rubbing Elsa's back in a way that was meant to be comforting and warm, but was really awkward and jerky, "come on. She would want you to be -" he licked his lips and swallowed thickly, biting back the sob that was vying for purchase within him, "she would want you to be strong."

Elsa's eyes darted upwards, meeting Kristoff's for a moment, before she looked away, burying her head into her arm as she sniffled pitifully.

"You're," she paused, disengaged from Anna's legs, and moved to a sitting position, "you're right," she spoke hoarsely. She wiped at her bloodshot eyes, and wiped away a stream of phlegm that had ran down her nose as she had wept. She looked up at Kristoff again, lachrymose eyes shimmering, threatening to overflow.

He extended a gloved hand, and she accepted, allowing herself to be heaved into a standing position. She murmured her thanks to the mountain main, before looking back at Anna. Her lower lip trembled and her cheeks twitched and spasmed. She whimpered quietly, looking at what _she_ had done to her own little sister.

But what else could she have done?

It was in her nature to hurt everyone she touched, after all.

With this bitter reminder, she jerked away from Kristoff, and clawed away the remnants of her weeping.

"Thank you," Elsa began, voice wavering, "you're right. Anna would want us to stay strong."

Kristoff nodded in agreement, and rumbled, "It wasn't your f-"

Unfortunately, Kristoff's sentiments were cut short, in no small part due to a certain groaning sound.

Elsa and he looked to the side, noticing a rather loathsome figure begin to stir. They looked each other in the eye for the slightest of moments, before Elsa's gaze whipped back to Hans. Resentment and blood boiling fury conquered her own grief and self loathing in that instant, and stormed towards him with all the subtlety of a rabid beast.

"You-" she slurred and snarled, heaving and lunging raggedly, "you've done this!"

Hans scuttled backwards on all fours, and stuttered pleadingly. Elsa, however, was having none of it, as she continued onwards. Her eyes darkened and the ice underneath Hans lurched and scraped upwards. Hans yelped and struggled pitifully as the frigid entity that was Elsa's will encased his right leg, and then his left. The ice grew and grew, enveloping his entire lower body, forcing him upright. He whimpered and jerked, panting and cursing as he desperately attempted to escape.

Elsa stalked ever closer, and brought her harrard, ghastly visage a hair's breadth away from the sniveling, writhing mass known as Prince Hans of The Southern Isles.

"You _pathetic_ -" Her fragmented accusation was punctuated with _crack_ as the ice crept upwards, enveloping his chest , "- _worthless!_ " The ice crept upwards again, reaching the nape of Hans's neck. The prince squalled and blubbered, wriggling and writhing like an insect.

" _You had the chance to save her! You could have done something! You, her groom-to-be! You...-"_ Elsa's capability to speak left her body, and all that remained was pure, unadulterated rage. The ice loomed above Hans's head, preparing to seal him away from the rest of the world.

Suddenly, Kristoff's vast presence appeared like a shroud over Elsa. He reached out and grabbed her arms, pulling her away from the cowering, grovelling prince.

"He isn't worth this. Under Arendellian law, he can be arrested and tried for treason. With what he's done, I'm sure everyone back in The Isles would let you have your way with him. Let him rot in a cell, he isn't worth this," Kristoff pleaded as Elsa struggled against his grasp. The ice receded, revealing Hans's face. He gasped for air, and sucked down each breath hungrily.

"Think about it, Queen Elsa. What would Anna want?" Kristoff's voice was small, and his words washed through her being, snapping her back into reality, and draining her of her rage induced insensibility.

"Elsa, what would Anna do if she saw you behaving this way? Like a _monster._ " Hans called out, wild eyes darting about before finally resting on her. He laughed in the most peculiar way, like how someone who had just skydived would laugh upon defying death. His tongue lolled out of his mouth hideously as he gulped down another breath.

"Don't you ever, _ever_ , say her name." Kristoff's words were cold and cutting. Venomous. He had not said a single word to Hans up until this point. He stalked towards Hans, and introduced the revolting prince to the back of his hand. "You don't deserve to even hear it. _Worm."_

Kristoff steered Elsa away from the imprisoned prince, and began to walk with her.

"Thank you, Queen Elsa... For letting the law decide his fate," Kristoff sighed heavily, rage replaced with weariness.

"It's what Anna would have wanted," Elsa spoke emptily. "I'm sorry," she sighed, "I don't think I've actually caught your name."

"It's Kristoff. Kristoff Bjorgman," the rugged mountain man replied in a strained voice. He sounded as though he had tried to sound cheery, but some hole in his head (or perhaps, his heart) had sucked up all the joy and exuberance he had been able to muster up and replaced it only with sorrow and weariness.

"Then I'm pleased to make your acquaintance, Kristoff Bjorgman. And please, call me Elsa. I do believe we're past such formal titles," Elsa spoke in much the same way, supplying a forced smile (that really looked more like a grimace) to go with it.

" Que- Elsa, look..." Kristoff started hesitantly. He had stopped walking, and had affixed his eyes to the ground. "Will you... Am I-you-we... What are we gonna do?" The words fell out of his mouth in a bitter, jumbled, broken mess as he looked about the frozen wasteland surrounding himself.

"About Anna?" Elsa's voice was hoarse and stuffy as she looked back at Kristoff.

"About _everything_ ," the mountain man breathed.

"I-" Elsa's voice stalled as she twirled, taking in the glacial world around her for the umpteenth time. "I don't know," she whispered, closing her eyes and _praying_ to wake up from the nightmare her life had been twisted into. Her face churned and contorted until she was right back where she was at the beginning: preparing to bawl her eyes out.

"I don't - I won't... This _can't_ be real!" She spoke with a cracking voice and a shattered spirit.

"If I pinch myself, maybe I can wake up!" She babbled, pinching herself obsessively.

 _'Maybe it isn't enough pain,'_ a voice in her mind slithered into awakening again. It made only made sense.

Surely this was a dream. She'd wake up from it if she was in enough pain, right? And in the blink of an eye, the sleeves of her dress were gone, and a jagged shard of ice was in her hand.

 _'If you hurt enough, you'll wake up. Everything will be be okay,'_ that voice crooned into her ear. The toxic melody slithered through her veins until the thrum of _hurt_ was the only thing she could comprehend.

Without a moment's hesitation, ice met flesh. Without a moment's hesitation, a hand took the shard away.

"Kristoff, what are you doing?" Elsa hissed, "This will bring Anna back. It's all a dream, i-it has to be. It can't be real!"

Kristoff looked down at the queen, and he spoke slowly and deliberately. "Elsa, this is not a dream. Anna is gone, and nothing can change it now. It hurts, I know it does, but what would she want most if she saw you right now?"

"She would... She would want me to be okay," Elsa blubbered, dissolving into a fresh set of tears as she sunk to the ground. The mountain man felt the pang of sympathy thrumming within his heart. He knelt down and reached out to her, intending to stroke her hair reassuringly. The moment his fingertips brushed her, Elsa jerked as if she had been punched in the gut, and frantically pushed herself away from Kristoff. She whimpered, and scuttled backwards along the snow covered ice, and only stopped after she had put a considerable distance between her and he. When her tearful, bloodshot, and frantic eyes made contact with his, he realized that Elsa need comforting words far more than a comforting touch.

"Elsa, nothing in the world can change where Anna is, but I know that she forgives you. The whole time we were together, she wouldn't -she _couldn't_ stop talking about you. How she and you used to build snowmen and sled and skate. She loved you, Elsa. She'd want you to be okay."

If the words had any semblance of a balming effect, it was hard to tell. Elsa's sobs only intensified, as she scratched and clawed at the snow and ice below her. "She l-luh-loved muh-me... A-a-and I kill-killed her!" She bawled and screamed, like a newborn during a thunderstorm. She wretched and gagged as raw emotion overtook her. She leaned over, and her stomach's contents left her body, coating the stark, pristine snow with a far more human precipitation. She panted weakly, wiped her lips. She had a few seconds worth of respite before she began to wail again. Her frozen tears mixed with the snow and puke and ice that already comprised the ground, coating it with yet another visual example of her own inner turmoil and absolute anguish.

"Elsa, please! It'll be okay. I know you're hurting right now, but no matter what, the world's gonna keep on turning. In time, the hurt will go away, I promise. Anna never held a thing against you!" Kristoff pleaded with her, slowly crawling over to where she had fled. Whether or not she registered it, Kristoff was eventually by her side. He hesitantly reached out, attempting to rub her back as she lay, propped upon her elbow. She shrunk away. He withdrew his hand and spoke gently, "Elsa... What would she say if she were here right now?"

The snow queen looked up from the pool of vomit that lay upon the snow, all chapped lips, bloodshot eyes, blotchy cheeks, and rancid breath as she whimpered, "She... She would t-tell me that... That it is-is-isn't my fault... She would wan-want me to f-f-f-forgive myse-heelf."

"I know she would. And you know it, too," Kristoff exhaled gently, standing up and offering Elsa his hand, "Be strong, Elsa. For Anna."

She slowly, cautiously accepted his hand and issued a hollow, "For Anna."

"Come on, now. There's no use sitting here and crying when we have something to do. We need to take care of Hans," Kristoff nudged Elsa, pointing back to the imprisoned prince who struggled vainly against the ice coating his body. They trudged back to Hans, and Elsa's grim determination, raw bereavement, and sheer exhaustion began to paint themselves in the skies above. The clouds began to grey and darken ominously, and small pebbles of ice berated the ground in a rapid manner.

As the _tat-tat-tat_ of ice upon ice rose from a dull drone to a grating roar, Elsa and Kristoff reached Hans and the Anna statue.

"Prince Hans Westergård of The Southern Isles, you are hereby placed under arrest for charges of treason and attempted regicide. You shall receive a trial by an Arrendellian court." Elsa's voice was soft, but carried the same level of finality as an executioner's booming roar atop gallows.

Hans's face once smug face turned stony and impassive and stony as he spoke (or shivered, more correcty), "Y-y-yes, Your M-m-majesty. I s-s-sup-p-pose now I m-must be esc-c-corted to the d-dungeons?"

Elsa didn't bother responding to Hans's unnecessary comment, and simply released him from his from his glacial encasement.

Or, more accurately, she _tried_ to. The ice did nothing in the vein of releasing it's prisoner and remained absolutely still instead. Elsa felt her nerves getting the better of her as she attempted to manipulate the ice again.

Her shaky, sweaty hands gained no measure of control over the icy confines that imprisoned the disgraced prince. Elsa whimpered, hunched down and wrung her hands. They were sweaty again. She hated it when they were sweaty.

Her breathing picked up, and she could feel the thud of her heart in her chest. It was nauseating and it made her head hurt. Suddenly, she was breathing far faster than she was before, and her consciousness felt like a speck of dust swept up in the ferocious tides of cosmic winds, carried far away from the ground it natively rested on. Her mind was buzzing and churning and boiling with two horrible words.

 _I can't._

The hail from earlier was supplemented with a slicing gale, and ferocious globs of sludgy snow fell from the heavens. The chunks of sleet were blown sideways by the ferocity of the wind, and pelted the landscape with a force comparable to that of a thrown stone.

Elsa looked around her in shock and utter terror. Her eyes glistened with fresh tears, and her heart only hammered harder in her chest. She could feel her blood pulsating in every part of her body. She could feel the sting of wet snow on tender flesh. She could feel the ferocious winds battering at her like a ram against a barricade. She could feel her heart preparing to burst. She could feel _everything_ she feared pressing against her, constricting her. Her tongue was too thick in her throat. She couldn't speak, and no matter how much she breathed, no air ever seemed to get to her lungs.

She fell to the ground, clutching her legs to her chest, and resting her forehead atop her knees. She rocked back and forth, desperately trying to comfort herself as her own storm battered the world around her. She couldn't think, couldn't breathe. She was nothing other than pure terror in that moment, and the entire world was terrifying.

" _Elsa_!" Kristoff's voice cut through the howling wind of the storm, and pierced the snow queen's inner mind, startling her enough to jerk her back into the real world.

Kristoff's burly figure, and that of an unconscious prince slung over one of his shoulders, cut through the whirlwind of snow and hail. Elsa's head jerked upright, and she saw them. She also saw who wasn't there.

" _Anna_!"

Kristoff's eyes widened in understanding, and he turned, searching for her. At that moment, Sven galloped into the scene, a snickering Olaf on his back.

"Sven! Take Hans back to the castle gates!" Kristoff bellowed over the roaring gale that dominated Arrendale, and plonked the dormant prince on the reindeer's back.

"Elsa, I need you to help me carry Anna back to the castle!"

"I-I can't! What if I drop her? What if I-"

"There's no time for this! If we leave her, one of the chunks of ice could hit her! What would happen then? Elsa, you'll do fine. We have to -hrrgh!- go now!" Kristoff grunted, hoisting Anna's frozen form. Elsa quickly came to his aid, grabbing one of Anna's booted feet, and walking forward as Kristoff backpedaled in time.

They continued on for a few moments, before a hunk of ice the size of a small orange flew into Kristoff's left arm. He cried out in pain, and nearly dropped Anna.

"Elsa, I think it's broken!" He shouted, using his head to point to his now limp arm. "You're going to have to work harder!"

Elsa groaned under the strain, and felt her body burning in a dozen different places. Kristoff's arm hung limply at his side, already purpling in the wake of the ice. He grunted, then growled. His face turned beet red as he fought to support his side of Anna.

"We - have to -d'aarrghh!- go faster - Elsah!"

Elsa sped her pace to a jog, huffing and puffing harder than she had ever huffed and puffed.

"I can see the gates, Kristoff. We're going to make it!" Elsa roared, hoping her voice could cut through the furious blizzard. It did, and Kristoff heard.

"We need to put her down so I can blast the gates open!" She cried out, praying to God that Kristoff had enough finesse to properly lower the frozen chunk of ice named Anna.

Fortunately, he did. Anna was lowered with ease (or as much ease as could be allotted in a scenario in which a queen with ice powers and an ice harvester with a broken arm are carrying an extraordinarily heavy statue of a princess with a frozen heart in the middle of a raging blizzard).

Elsa felt herself beginning to panic again at the notion of using her powers deliberately. What if she blew the entire castle apart? What if there were people on the other side of the gate that would be hurt or worse? What if there were guards waiting for her, Kristoff's, Sven's, and Olaf's heads?

In the end, she decided that her fate, and even those of the others around her, didn't matter if it meant there was a chance to get whatever was left of Anna to a safe place.

And thus, with Kristoff and Sven and Olaf and an unconscious Hans and a frozen Anna behind her, Queen Elsa of Arendelle shattered the thick, tall wooden gates that had once barred her from the rest of the world.

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 **Tsubasamilkybunny's A/N:** She would like to thank everyone for reading this, and state that this _is_ going to have smut eventually. Just as a precaution to all readers.

 **Icy Poses and Runny Noses's A/N:** Thanks to everyone for reading this/following/favoriting/et cetera. If you have anything you want us to see, or if you have any sorts of edits or suggestions, feel free to PM us, or leave a review. Thanks again for reading, you guys. Also, I'll definitely put a warning up on any chapter with smut, in case that isn't really your speed haha.


	2. Conceal, Don't Feel

**Disclaimer:** _Neither Tsubasamilkybunny nor I own or are affiliated with Disney and the Frozen franchise in any way, shape, or form. We are simply avid fans. That said, enjoy the chapter!_

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 **Chapter Two: Conceal, Don't Feel**

The great wooden doors thudded heavily upon the ice covered courtyard, and the ice fractured from the heavy impact. Spiderwebs danced across the frozen floor, giving the entire world's reflection a gnarled, knotted quality. Elsa had very briefly lost herself in observance of this peculiar world, before snapping her attention back to the situation at hand. She needed to get into the castle so she could find the help to get Anna inside. She and Kristoff shoved the statue into the courtyard, taking refuge on the rough stone surface of the walls. The fierce winds (and the icy projectiles known colloquially as "snow, sleet, and hail") were quickly forgotten, in no small part due to their stony barricade. The precipitation, aided by the winds, could only pelt the outer sides of the walls uselessly. Kristoff (upon securing a place on the wall) set to investigating his arm, and Elsa took the moment's respite to think.

No doubt, there would be guards (whether foreign or Arendellian) searching for her. Going off of her previous encounter in the Ice Palace, they didn't really care if she was brought back dead or alive, either. She took a deep breath and gathered together whatever fleeting amount of courage she could muster up.

"Kristoff, we can't carry Anna into the castle on our own. We need to get help," she started, eyes darting about, searching for hidden guards. Her eyes finally reached his once she was satisfied with her search.

The burly mountain man met her gaze and deadpanned, "I know. We need to talk to everyone in the castle."

Olaf (who had remained uncharacteristically quiet up until this point) piped up, "Oh! We're going into the castle? Can I go? I reeeally want to meet everyone! Also, why's Anna frozen? Kristoff kissed her, right?"

Elsa looked down, feeling a familiar onset of stinging in her eyes, and a new lump in her throat.

Kristoff looked down at the snowman and cleared his throat, "Now's... Now's not a good time, Olaf. We'll talk about it later. And you need to stay here."

"Why?" Olaf asked innocently.

"People aren't exactly used to talking to a living snowman, and otherwise... Otherwise Sven might run away! That's- that's right! If nobody watches Sven he'll absolutely wander off! Isn't that right, _buddy?_ "

Sven looked at Kristoff skeptically, and after a few moments of some intense glaring on Kristoff's part, relented.

Olaf looked at Sven, then at Kristoff. He grinned, "You can count on me!" He soon thereafter began to lecture Sven about the importance of remaining sedentary as he himself roamed about the courtyard. Taking advantage of the moment, Kristoff reopened conversation with Elsa, hoping to persuade her to speak to the gentry and citizenry currently taking refuge in Arendelle's palace.

"You know we have to speak to everyone. We need them to understand that you aren't a threat."

"But _I am_! I'm the cause of all of this!" Elsa's voice was quiet as she stood, hunched and rubbing her hands together.

Kristoff's expression fell to the floor, and he stared Elsa down, completely neutral. "You yourself are _not_ a threat. Just... We need to get you back on the throne. Arendelle can't handle another Hans, and it can't handle having no leader in a situation like this."

"You... You're right," she acquiesced, biting back the acrid taste of her rising panic (as well as the inside of her cheek).

"If we bring Hans with us, and things get ugly, he'd make a decent bargaining chip... I think I can still carry him."

"Y-yeah... That'd probably work. The doors are on the far side of this cloister. As soon as you've got Hans, we can go in." She took a deep breath, closed her eyes. She opened them and blurted out, "On the condition that I go first.

Kristoff's focus shifted from the (still) unconscious royal and back onto Elsa as he protested, "That's too dangerous! What if someone tries to kill you?!"

 _It'd make no difference. What's the point in a world without Anna?_

"Exactly. If I'm in the front, I can protect the both of us and disarm whoever is attacking us."

"... Okay. Fair point." Kristoff relented looked away. He bent down and scooped Hans up with his good arm and nodded to the door with his head, "Whenever you're ready, then."

Elsa took a deep breath, and another. It was maddening, she decided, to know that she was about to plunge into a scenario where she may have to fight for her life. Even worse was the knowledge that she would have to confront the very same dignitaries that had attended her coronation and following ball. She trembled, imagining facing The Duke of Weselton again. The way he had cried out, pointing at her and screaming, " _Monster_ ," reverberated within the confines of her mind.

She shook her head, forcing the terror back ( _Conceal it, don't feel it. Don't let it show)_.

Strange it was, how one day earlier it had seemed like she had the entire world at her fingertips. When she had stood atop the North Mountain, it seemed as though she had it all. She was alone, she was no danger to anyone, and she was _free_. Strange it was, that she had only tasted that feeling fleetingly. Strange it was how quickly the cruel mistress of life took away such pleasures and joys, and left only fears and self-loathing in it's wake.

She shook her head, clearing away the fog of her musings. She needed to focus.

"I'm ready," she whispered. She turned and made for the door, with Kristoff hot on her heels. She came to the door and tested the knob.

 _Unlocked._

An eyebrow arched, and her heart rate spiked. That could mean any number of things, few of them favorable. She glanced back at Kristoff and held up a hand, telling him to stop and remain still for a moment. She twisted the knob, and pulled the door back enough to stick her head in the opened hole and search for possible passerbies or guards. Satisfied with her search and it's results, she advanced through the empty hallways, beckoning for Kristoff to follow. There was a droning noise that appeared to be coming from the ballroom to the right, oddly enough.

She looked to Kristoff to ensure that he was okay with checking out the noise., He nodded. They advanced on the room, and the noise began to broaden. It sounded like a hundred voices all echoing in a discordant cacophony.

 _"I says she done this on purpose!"_

 _"Not so! Did you see how terrified she looked in front of everyone?"_

 _"Because she knew she would be executed for witchcraft!"_

 _"Quiet the lot of ye! I've got a baby and yer makin 'im cry!"_

Elsa grimaced, and the realization that these were her own subjects taking refuge within the castle hit her in full force. She backed away from the door in sudden consternation. She put her hand on the side of a wall, leaning on it for support. Much to her terror, she heard an all too familiar cracking sound. She bit her lip, and dared to look over at her hand.

She gasped quietly, and jerked away from the wall, bumping into Kristoff and knocking him on his broken arm. He yelped in shock and pain.

Elsa's brows furrowed, her eyes fell, and her lips pooched forward. She looked as though she had just been kicked in the gut as she let out an incredibly small, incredibly vulnerable, "Oh, no..."

The noise of the voices stopped. For a moment, there was a silence louder than any stampede. This was soon thereafter replaced with the pitter-patter of hundreds of feet as they made for the ballroom doors to investigate the origin of the most peculiar noise they had detected.

Very suddenly, there was a crowd of Arendellian citizenry in the hallway that Kristoff, Elsa, and the unconscious Hans were in.

"It's the witch and her henchman! They're trying to take Hans away!" One of the citizens cried out, in a belligerent state.

The other citizens frothed and boiled, equally as enraged that Elsa would dare to take away the *seemingly* benevolent man that had aided them and opened the castle doors to them after Elsa had unleashed her winter.

"Wait, wait! This isn't true!" Kristoff shouted, raising his injured arm in a way that did not exactly look painless. He winced slightly at the action, and returned the arm to his side.

The citizens cocked their heads, and looked from Kristoff to Elsa, as if they expected her to say something to them. Elsa winced, unsure of whether a crowd of citizens waiting for her to speak or a crowd of citizens waiting for her head on a silver platter was more terrifying.

 _At least you know where you stand with a crowd of citizens that wish to behead you._

Elsa heaved, feeling her pulse raise yet again. Her heartbeat became so powerful that she could feel it pulsing in the back of her head, and a pressure began to build behind her eyes. She breathed faster and faster, and her tongue felt like it was so thick that it was blocking air from getting past her gaping mouth. It was horrifying, to have so many people who _knew_ waiting for her to justify everything. They were waiting for her to explain, to rationalize why she unleashed a winter in the middle of the summer. Why she would freeze over Arendelle's countryside and crops, why she would freeze over their ports, why she would kill innocent men, women, and children by exposure. Why she would -

Kristoff, it seemed, noticed Elsa's inner turmoil. He spoke softly, and gently. In the sort of way someone would absolutely not be compelled to speak if their continued survival depended on the words of a panicking Snow Queen. Regardless, he leaned towards her and breathed, "Elsa... For _Anna_. For the sake of laying her to rest, and for being who she would want you to be."

The words hit home for Elsa. She tried, she really did. She took a deep breath, and told everything within her to _slow down_. She swallowed thickly, and breathed again. At this point, whatever chattering had come from the crowd had died away in it's entirety. They were waiting. Elsa gulped down one last mouthful of air before beginning to speak.

"Hello, to you all," she began quietly, "I am a-acutely aware of the circumstances that have forced you to take up residence in the palace, and I am even more acutely aware of how compromising of a position I am in." Elsa sighed, rubbing at her still-blotchy face and still-bloodshot eyes. She whimpered quietly before bringing her eyes back up to the crowd.

"I know you're wondering why," Elsa's voice cracked on that last word, "why I have froze your kingdom. Why I have destroyed your crops. Why I have not lifted this accursed winter. Why I ran away. Why I have an unconscious Prince Hans being hauled around by an ice harvester named Kristoff Bjorgman. Why I haven't done a better job of being your Queen. Why I'm destroying everything your hands have constructed with a single touch.

"I don't know. _I don't know_. I can't control this. I can't control _me_. And Anna has paid the ultimate price for it," she confessed thickly. She swallowed again (why was her tongue so thick?) and continued, "And Arendelle is _paying_ the price for it. You all are. You're paying with professions, with livelihoods, with homes, with soulmates, and fathers and mothers and children. You're paying with your birthrights. And you're paying for _my_ mistakes. I can't..." She bit back a bitter sob, and swallowed heavily. Her heart was beating so fast she was sure her arteries would burst.

She sucked down another ragged breath and lurched back into her broken speech, "I can't ever undo what has been done. _Ever_. I can't bring back everyone I've taken out there," she pointed to the outer walls of the castle with a quivering hand.

"Even if after all of this is over, and I am allowed to remain unincarcerated... I can never, _ever_ bring back what I've taken and I'm so sorry. I'm sorry for freezing the heart of your princess. I'm sorry for taking away your homes. I'm sorry for taking away your loved ones. I'm sorry..." She sucked down another trembling breath and permitted herself one more pitiful utterance.

" _I'm sorry for everything_."

"I thought I was free when I ascended the North Mountain. I thought Anna could be your Queen when she came of age, instead of me. I thought I could live the rest of my days alone. _Free_. I understand now that this dream is not for me. Anna is _gone_ because of me and my foolishness. But I'm all you have. And I'm sorry that I'm not enough. Right now... Right now we _need_ to pull together, or else we will all die alone.

"It's not about which family is more wealthy than which anymore. It's not about who doesn't like whom anymore. It's about _us_. All of us, whether Arendellian or foreigner. We need to share amongst each other, not hoard supplies. We need to heal the sick, and not take everything they own and leave them to die. We need to love one another, not hate somebody for existing as they are. I know this winter is my doing, and I know I can't undo it. Not _yet_. But I promise you all that I will spend every waking moment of the rest of my life gaining control over my curse. I promise you all that I _will_ find a way to thaw your country. You have to trust me!

"And this Prince, this Hans that you believe is here solely to help you, he is not what he seems to be! He twisted the truth and attempted to kill me. He used Anna's death to try to take the throne of Arendelle!... He... _Anyone_ so callous is not to be trusted, you must trust me. He-he lied to me about Anna's death. He claimed she died with him, in his arms. But it isn't true! She died saving _me_!

"And I know I'm not worthy of her sacrifice, but she died saving me from _Hans_. Hans is only here to take this kingdom for his own! You all must trust me! We must imprison Hans. Let me be your Queen. Give me one last chance to try to mend the destruction I have wrought." On that last sentence, her voice quieted. Where previously it had been a powerfully booming declaration, it was now a mere whisper.

" _Please_."

Olaf decided to make his presence, and that of the reindeer he was still watching (or more accurately, dragging by the horns) known,"You guys really have to trust her! She's telling the truth about Hans. I was with Kristoff and Sven when we took Anna to the trolls. They said that 'only an act of true love can thaw a frozen heart.' We took Anna back to Hans so he could kiss her. So he could heal her heart! He never did. He left her to die alone! Anna told me herself when I found her!"

The crowd took in Olaf's words alongside some murmurs of disapproval.

" _Who's the fuckin' snowman?!"_ A crotchety, older voice sounded out from within the depths of the crowd. The shout was followed by a slapping noise, and then the shout of a woman.

" _You aren't supposed to swear in front of royalty! You know that, you stupid oaf!"_

Olaf snickered loudly, and Kristoff had the good sense to hide his laughter, even if he did so rather poorly. Sven (whose horns were still in Olaf's death grip) snorted.

Elsa sighed, chiefly in annoyance at the snowman's inability to follow simple direction.

 _He did make this much easier, though._

"This is Olaf. I created him. Up on the North Mountain, I let my powers loose. Apparently... Apparently I was capable of creating something that was alive," she spoke quietly.

The citizens murmured in wonder and surprise. Elsa took advantage of their relative lack of attention and focus, rallying them again.

"Now isn't the time! Hans had the chance to save Anna, and he did not! As the acting monarch I am placing him under arrest for treason and attempted regicide. He shall stand trial for his actions. Right now, we need to bring Anna's..." She sighed tremulously, "Anna's body back in here. We will be making fu-funeral arrangements soon. Please, if there are any able-bodied individuals willing to c-carry her in... It would be greatly appreciated," she finished lamely, unable to meet the eyes of her citizens.

The crowd murmured amongst themselves, processing what Elsa had said to them. One young man stepped forward, then another.

"We'll bring Anna inside, Your Majesty." The second one said. He had eyes as green as moss and hair that looked like sand in both color and coarseness.

The Queen murmured her thanks, and turned to Kristoff, Sven, and Olaf (who still hadn't let go of Sven).

"You just can't follow one simple direction. Can you, Olaf?" She asked dryly, shooting Olaf a poker face that many professional gamblers would have killed for.

"But I did! You told me to keep Sven from leaving, and to stay outside. I did follow _one_ of those," he finished with an impish (but chiefly innocent) grin.

"Okay, okay... You were helpful today... I... We'll work on following directions later, okay?" Elsa had a very slight, albeit odd, smile on her face as she spoke.

"Okay!" Olaf squeaked.

Elsa chuckled (or feigned one, she really wasn't sure which) and delivered one final instruction to Olaf, "Okay, now run along. Kristoff and I need to talk for a bit. All right?"

Olaf grinned and nodded, and ran off.

Or, most of him did.

The poor snowman had forgotten all about his unrelenting grip on Sven's antlers when he had chosen to leave. As such, both of the snowman's arms were still snugly attached to the reindeer.

"Uhhh... Guys? Can you lend me a hand? Or an arm?" Olaf smiled saccharinely, pleased with his own joke (or poor excuse for one).

Elsa and Kristoff groaned, and she carefully peeled the fingers off of Sven, who seemed to snort a rough "thank you." She shoved the arms back into the little snowman's body, and he squealed in glee before running off again. This time, no appendage was left behind.

Finally, Elsa turned to Kristoff.

"Let's find someone to see to your arm," she spoke softly.

The mountain man murmured in assent, and (after entrusting Prince Hans to a large number of burly woodsmen) they set about in search of a doctor.

The search was rather quickly rewarded, and within the hour, a crude splint had been fashioned for the mountain man's arms (thanks, in no small part to the contributions of a handful of generous people). Kristoff thanked the doctor politely.

He met up with Elsa, who had waited near the doctor and him (and had overheard all of his numerous protests and exclamations of pain, which included no small amount of profanity.

After a few moments of conversation, he and Elsa agreed to sleep and get some water (which was in no short supply in it's solid form) before moving on to speak to the nobles and The Duke of Weselton.

Kristoff settled down near the makeshift fire pit, and Sven snuggled up next to him. Olaf remained a safe distance away from the fire pit, but admired it like a teenager with pyromaniacal tendencies would likely admire a bonfire that was given generous portions of gasoline and other flammable goods.

Elsa settled down in the hallway, where the young men had set Anna. She was propped up, back against the wall and knees to her chest. She had her arms wrapped around her shins, hands linked together by the fingertips.

She looked up at Anna and sighed, "I don't know what to do, Anna. I just... I don't know."

The confession was scarcely louder than a whisper. Elsa's voice was gone after the past few hours. All the screaming, wailing, sickness, shouting, and everything else had taken it's toll. Her voice was painful to listen to, and even more painful to use. It sounded husky and hollow, raw and repenting, bereaved and berated. Elsa  
half-sobbed, but was so cried out that no more tears came. She stared at Anna that night.

Anna was the last thing she saw when she was awake, and was the only thing she saw when she slept that night.

* * *

 **Angel Poses and Runny Noses's A/N: Wow! I cannot believe how much positive reception this has already gotten. A special thanks to  
** **glittering-snowfall and CnITellUSmThin, who have left reviews. I cannot stress enough how excited it has made both I and Tsubasamilkybunny to know that someone likes what we are doing. Thanks to everyone else who is reading/following/favoriting this as well. I look forward to continuing to write for you all!**


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